The London Friendship Quilters Guild is a non-profit organization whose aims are to promote an appreciation for the art and craftsmanship of patchwork and quilting; provide educational opportunities in the art of quilting; and provide a forum for friendly exchange of ideas and information.

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Saturday, September 26, 2009

LFQG would like to welcome Hyggeligt as a new sponsor to our website! Hyggeligt is a London, Ontario based on-line fabric store with a designer touch. They feature Amy Butler, Kaffe Fassett and Joel Dewberrry fabric lines. You can visit their website here or click on the link in the sidebar.

Sunday, September 20, 2009

We were so pleased that Fiber artist, Susan Norman was available to spend this beautiful Saturday with us, sharing some of the secrets to her incredible thread painted art. This workshop was all about developing a technique.

Susan explained how she uses photographs to help her achieve the look she wants. Working to duplicate the effects in the background and bringing out the details of the foreground.........all with fabric and thread and her sewing machine.

Here, you see the photo she worked from and the finished piece beside it.

She showed us how to create a “painterly” background by building layers with tulle followed by stitching with thread.

She generously brought with her, a fabulous stash of tulle and thread in wonderful colours for our use.

We were instructed to think of our needle and thread as a “very fine brush” with which we would paint our creations.

Susan showed us how to focus on details............she took a single flower petal and demonstrated how to go about doing a simple contour outline of a petal, how to do this with the addition of tulle or fabric and finally using thread alone to create the depth, shading and shadows we see in each delicate portion of our subject.

Participants eagerly followed instructions, Susan was able to answer the many questions put to her and gave us terrific one on one guidance. Although our projects are not yet finished, and as you can see some chose to do backgrounds while others tried their hand at abstracts and yet others, florals.Susan pointed out the strengths in each piece along with ideas and suggestions on how we might best proceed to develop them into a completed art work.

This workshop was all about developing a technique and it looks like the guild now has a few new thread painters among it's members.

Sunday, September 13, 2009

Garnet Smalley from Cotton By Postwas our guest speaker. All dressed up in his Irish green soccer jersey he gave us a small trunk show previewing some of the Irish quilts that will be seen at the upcoming Quilts of Ireland Show to be held in Ailsa Craig. This will the third international quilt show that he and his wife Suzanne, has hosted in Ailsa Craig. Previously, they have hosted master quilters from Russia and quilters from Africa. By themselves they organize the travel arrangements, scheduling, billeting, workshops, and activities for dozens of international quilters. It is an amazing accomplishment on their part and a wonderful opportunity for all of us to experience the culture of these countries through the tradition of quilting and all so close to home!But first Garnet spoke of the ongoing impact of the previous African show. He showed us the Unity Quilt, where each block represents a story of conflict resolution, the centre block represents the ultimate goal of peace with God. Cotton By Post was granted stewardship of the quilt as Garnet takes it on tour and displays it at various schools to spread its message of peace.

Garnet told us tales of their trip to Ireland, how welcome they were made to feel, and free Guinness beer. Starting in Dublin, they then toured various towns, visited guilds and gave talks on the upcoming show. One of their tour guides was Sherry Nugent editor of Irish Quilting Magazine. Irish Quilting Magazine will be one of the many guests of the show in Ailsa Craig. Look for an upcoming article about the show in IQM.

Although the basics of quilting are the same the world over, Garnet is truly fascinated by how individuals reflect their culture through quilting.

Quilters from Ireland will be at the show doing workshops to share their talent and culture with us. Descriptions of all the classes can be found on their website. As well, there will be Canadian quilters Kathie Wylie, author of Sewflakes, and Brenda Millerof Among Brenda's Quilts.

Quilts of Ireland 2009 runs from October 19-24, 2009, at the Ailsa Craig Recreational Arena and features daily passes to the Quilt Show, Lectures and Slideshows, a Gala Banquet and workshops featuring Irish and Canadian teachers.

Guild Business:

Here are some Kids'Quilts returned!

The Guild welcomed 6 new members! Workshops were filling up quickly (see sidebar on right for a list of activities), with the Disappearing 9 Patch now full! October's guest speaker was announced: Michelle Dobrin fiber artist from Windsor, ON. There is a proposal for some Round Robins as a guild activity. Stay tuned as the Exec works out the details!

Many apples (below) to the food bank as this month's Secret Notion, thanks everyone!

Monday, September 7, 2009

I trust everyone had a good summer! Just a reminder for new members: We meet the 2nd Thursday of every month from September to June at St George's Presbyterian Church 1475 Dundas St. East (just east of Hale Street), doors open at 6:15PM and the meeting starts at 7PM. Any changes due to weather and unforseen circumstances will be announced on the blog and sent out in an email, those without an email address will be phoned.

Registration Desk:

The registration desk is now at the back of the room to prevent clogging of the stairs. Make sure you sign in first! This is where you can pick up the newsletters, buy tickets for the door prize and sign up for workshops.

Secret Notion:

We encourage all our members to wear their name tags to the meeting, and if you have a guild chatelaine wear that too! To facilitate this loyalty to the guild, we offer tickets for some fat quarter draws...wear your name tag, receive a ticket, wear your chatelaine, receive a ticket, and as a bonus to our regular blog readers, we announce a Secret Notion on the blog, the week before the meeting. Bring the Secret Notion, receive a ticket! In the spirit of back to school, this month's Secret Notion is a fresh apple. These apples will be donated to the Food bank on behalf of the Guild.

Library:

The Library is open from 6:15 to 7Pm and during breaks at meetings. You are allowed to borrow any number of books until the next meeting. You must return your books at the next meeting or a fee of $1.00 per month is levied. Books must be signed out, but magazines are on the honour system. The LFQG is a guild member of the CQA and the library carries the 2 copies of Canadian Quilter that is sent to us. A great read, highly recommended! The Library also contains the minutes and photo albums from the past meetings for your perusal.

Guest Speaker:

This month's guest speaker is Garnet Smalley of Cotton By Post. He will be talking about their upcoming quilt show Quilts of Ireland 2009. Cotton By Post has made a tradition of bringing in International quilters to rural Ontario and we look forward to what they have in store for us this year!

Show and Share:

We keep the best for last! Each month, we invite our members to bring in their latest completed quilts. It is such a treat to see amazing array of colours and textures and talent that each member has to offer!

Newsletter:

Newsletters are produced every other month, most of you will have already received the August/September edition by email, those that did not will be able to pick up a copy at the registration desk. Members are welcome to contribute to the newsletter and can email Jill B. for details. The next newsletter will be the October/November edition, and the deadline for contribution would be the last week of September.

Blog:

This is where you will find an up to date record of our events. I post meeting reminders, including the Secret Notion, by the Monday prior to the next meeting. I post a recap of the events by the Monday after the meeting. Along the sidebar of this blog you will find links to our advertisers, guest speakers, quilt shows, and other useful information.

Postcard Exchange:

Lynn D has offered to take on this popular activity. Make a fabric postcard (a link to the instructions can be found in the sidebar or click here).Do not address it, but just put your own return address on the left, drop it in the mailbox on the registration desk and you will receive another postcard back in the mail! You will receive back, as many as you drop in.

Outreach and Kids' Quilts:

Penny H and her volunteers are available at each meeting to receive donated quilts for Children's Aid. Each month they have kits available for members to complete; all the materials are provided. Kits are quilts in various stages of completion. If you like to bind, you can ask for quilts waiting to be bound, if you like to piece, or if you like to practice your machine quilting, there are kits available at each meeting. At each meeting they will display the completed quilts along the west wall of the church.

Break time:

We encourage members to bring their own beverage or light snack to the meetings, however for the first meeting of the year, the Executive will be providing snack and beverage. Feel free to bring your own mug for tea or juice (to help cut down on waste!).